Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Matthew David Zaitz, 34, of Topeka, was sentenced Friday to 52 months in prison for a 2020 crash that seriously injured his passenger.

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Kenneth W. Mills, 36, of De Soto, was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility for parole for 25 years for criminal sodomy of a three- to four-year-old at the time of offense.

In August, a jury convicted Mills of engaging in sexual contact with a female child who was under his care and residing in his Lawrence home in 2010 and 2011.

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that a jury returned guilty verdicts on two counts of aggravated sexual battery against Axel R. Bordelon, 30, of Lawrence, for a 2014 case involving a then-19-year-old University of Kansas student.

Charges stemmed from two incidents in 2014. The first incident occurred in July of 2014 and the second occurred in November of 2014.

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that a jury returned a guilty verdict on one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon against Brandon A. Seepersad, 26, of Lawrence.

Charges stemmed from an incident that occurred shortly before midnight on March 27, 2021 when Seepersad pointed a loaded gun at a tow truck driver who was authorized to tow unpermitted cars from an apartment complex located at 1000 Emery Road in Lawrence. At the time of the incident, the tow truck driver had been in the process of loading Seepersad’s vehicle for towing.

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Ernest F. Ingram II, 22, of Ottawa, was sentenced to 253 months in prison for raping a 13-year-old Lawrence girl in 2021 and six months for furnishing alcohol to the minor for illicit purposes.

Judge Amy Hanley sentenced Ingram, who accepted a plea agreement in December, to the Kansas Department of Corrections for both convictions that are to be served consecutively. Ingram will be subject to lifetime post-release supervision and must register as a lifetime sex offender.

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Adrian J. Martinez, 39, of Lawrence, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter while driving under the influence and aggravated battery while under the influence for causing the 2022 New Year’s Day crash that killed a 20-year-old Lawrence man.

The University of Kansas School of Law’s Legal Aid Clinic will host a Clean Slate Criminal Record Expungement Clinic this spring in partnership with the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office and the Lawrence Public Library. The clinic will take place in person from noon to 2:30 p.m. Feb. 6 in the Lawrence Public Library Auditorium, 707 Vermont St. 

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Eduardo Martinez Diaz, 16, of Lawrence, was sentenced for two counts of criminal discharge of a firearm in connection to a 2021 shooting in north Lawrence. 

Judge Merlin Wheeler sentenced Martinez Diaz, who was charged as an adult and who pleaded guilty in December, to 36 months probation with a 64-month underlying sentence in prison if Martinez Diaz violates the terms of his probation. Martinez Diaz also will be required to register as a violent offender for 15 years. 

A victim of a crime should never be afraid to come forward. Reporting a crime is the most effective way to make our community safer by holding offenders accountable. Yet far too often, many default to a position of disbelief or distrust when survivors of sexual assault share their experiences.

When a sexual assault is in any way made public, especially because of the involvement of the criminal justice system, people typically wonder: